Skin Deep
by shadowjack12345
Summary: Beast Boy has survived an awful lot of awful things in his life. What would it take to have him sacrifice that survival?


**Skin Deep**

**A tumblr prompt story. Enjoy :)**

Burning.

Everything burned. Everything _hurt_. His muscles screamed at him to stop, slow down or just stop pushing them so damn hard. His lungs ached for air as his body burned oxygen faster than he could replace it. His eyes stung, whipped by the air and his own sheer velocity, unwilling to blink. He burned as he ran. A part of him realised he had transformed into the Beast but, for once, he and the creature were in perfect alignment. They both had the same goal, the same prayer, the same mantra ringing through their heads:

Reach Raven.

In his accelerated perception, he saw the blast getting near her. He had forgotten the name of their foe and those of all their friends, knowing only Raven and the red light that advanced upon her. He ran. He leapt...

_**Earlier**_

"Titans, go!"

Robin's battlecry echoes around the empty street, his compatriots scattering and moving to attack their targets. Some lucky idiot had stumbled across a cache of old weapons. A cache of _Slade's_ old weapons. Naturally, they had made the obvious choice and gone on a crime spree. Idiots. If the real Slade had been taken down by the Titans, how did these morons expect to do with a bunch of hand-me-down laser weapons they hadn't even been trained to use? In short order, the group of thugs were down. All seemed well until the worst happened: one of the aforementioned morons, raising his hands in surrender, already on his knees, accidentally triggered his weapon, perhaps due to that lack of training. There was a humming sound for only a moment, Raven's eyes widening in realisation. Robin stretched out a hand but before he could even speak, there was a flash of red light. He turned away as a concussive blast shook him, turning back to see what had happened. What _must_ have happened... only it hadn't. Raven was still there, whole and healthy. On front of her, however, was a charred Beast who promptly collapsed to the ground and shrank into their friend. On his smaller frame, the wound seemed even worse. There was a moment of horrified silence before Raven threw herself to his side, her eyes panicked, shrieking his name.

"BEAST BOY!"

The green hero looked up, dazed, at his friend. His ears were ringing but he was pretty sure she was calling his name. He smiled wearily at her, knowing that for her to yell at him, that probably meant she was alive. He had saved her. His smile grew, perhaps inappropriately as he thought on that fact. _He_ had saved her. Not Robin or Cyborg or Robin... but him. Beast Boy. He blinked up at her stupidly and he tried to will his hand to reach for her. Nothing happened. She was still screaming at him. He closed his eyes. This was okay. This was a good death. He thought about his life: all of the pain, all of the joy, all of the experiences, all of the work, all of the play, all of the training and all of the memories. If all of that living had led him here, had been nothing but his crucible to prepare him for this moment, this chance to surrender his life to preserve hers... it was worth it. Satisfied, he only smiled as the darkness crept in

"_GARFIELD!_"

_**Later**_

His eyes cracked open and squinted at the harsh light above him. Everything still hurt, though it was a less urgent pain. More like an all-over bruise. He realised he was in the medical bay. Then he realised that he must still be alive. Bonus. His eyes scanned the room a little, though it hurt to move his head. He stilled when he heard footsteps, light and regular. He took a deep, painful breath and confirmed with his nose what his ears already told him: Raven was here. Her face appeared above him and he smiled. He opened his mouth...

"Don't speak. You're still very weak," she said. He nodded weakly but his eyes remained fixed on her. She turned her head away for a moment. "Cyborg says you'll be in here for at least a week, though any typical person would be here for a month." She faced him again, so he nodded his understanding. She looked away and bit her lip, still feeling his eyes on her. She had a big question to ask. Her mouth opened at the same time as the door, revealing Cyborg with a broad smile.

"Hey! The sensors told me you were probably awake," he laughed, overjoyed to see his friend on the mend. Beast Boy smiled but was secretly annoyed: with this interruption, Raven would hold her tongue and run away. "Now don't speak, BB. Your transformation seems to have strained every bit of you, even your voice, so-"

"I already told him," Raven interrupted. Beast Boy glanced toward her, though she was now hovering just outside his field of vision. He was genuinely surprised she was still here.

"R-right," Cyborg stammered. "Well, with your metabolism, I estimate you'll be in here about a-"

"I told him that, too."

"Oh. Okay." Cyborg, caught in Ravens dispassionate stare, was suddenly gripped by the idea that he shouldn't be there. "Well! I got uh... stuff. I'll see you later," he said, exiting swiftly. Raven appeared again. He watched her closely. She only returned his gaze for a full minute. Finally, she spoke.

"You tried to die for me," she said. It wasn't a question. He could only nod.

_Yes_.

Raven took a deep, shuddering breath. She looked down at his torso, naked and covered in sensors. Still, evident on his skin, were scars and marks of old pain. She knew, intellectually, that he had suffered as a child but, confronted with this evidence, she was almost moved to tears. Tentatively, her shaking fingers stretched out and traced the lines of some of his scars, eliciting a wheezing and surprised gasp from the changeling. Her eyes, full of anxiety, snapped back to his. He was smiling, telling her as best he could:

_It's okay_.

Her fingers returned to his skin, and she blushed as she sensed how much he relished the contact.

"So much pain," she whispered, now sensing his concern. She faced him, no longer concerned with hiding the tears she knew must be slipping past her control. "You survived so much pain. You lived and lived well, a good life in spite of those who hurt you. How could you give that up for me?" she asked. His hand twitched and weakly lurched toward her own. Seeing his attempt, Raven met him half-way and took his hand in hers. She felt him tugging, feebly, and so leaned down, closer to him. He managed to whisper two words:

"Worth it." Raven jerked back, still holding his hand.

"How? _Why_?" she blurted. He blinked and smiled, one brow lifting in humour. His face said it all.

_You know why._

She wiped at her eyes with her free hand before it too clasped around his, nodding. She had to smile: she could sense and understand it clearly, now.

"You love me," she said, softly. He nodded again. A short burst of sobbing laughter spilled from her mouth. She had always suspected his feelings, occasionally fearing that she returned them. She had decided that it was safer to keep it all hidden, that it would hurt less if they didn't get involved. Today, she had learned that was all utter crap. She looked at him again: he still smiled, but there was a fear in his eyes. She knew he expected her to leave, to run, as she often did in emotional situations. She tried to will herself to speak but no words. Instead, she elected to show him. With her powers, she pulled a chair toward her and sat at his bedside, his hand still wrapped up in hers. His eyes became less fearful and more hopeful. She smiled at him, nervously but truthfully.

And she stayed.

**END**

**Probably not what you had in mind but, if I'm honest, I've seen a few stories about BB revealing his scars etc. So I messed with it a bit. Enjoy!**

**-Jack**


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